It isn't surprising. Not one bit. Players being caught in a fixing scandal in the scandalous IPL was just a question of when, not if. With so much of money floating around and the 'brick-wall' transparency of it all, the IPL is anything but clean.
Earlier in the tournament, when the matches got closer than they should have, match fixing seemed a plausible argument. The only thing lacking in the accusation was evidence. Evidence for spot-fixing has been unearthed. Unfortunately for match-fixing it would be quite difficult because of the BCCI. Match fixing would need the involvement of the top brass of corrupt people. They are quite adept at hiding the bottom.
If they were caught, slowly but surely, they would take IPL the WWE way. It would just be entertainment. It would all be staged with an elaborate yet tantalizing storyline.
The story would begin with N Srinivasan's daughter (Rupa Gurunath) being abducted by the previous season's IPL champion. It wouldn't be CSK of course. Srini would then order Rajiv Shukla to send out teams to battle against the champions to get his daughter back. He would make CSK the slightly stronger team.
The battle would be for the fair maiden's heart of cement. And as is the way with women, the teams would also start competing against each other. Then due to cultural differences, one team would roll their eyes into their heads and then lay the smackdown on the other. Every team would have a finishing move like Dhoni's helicopter shot or the Dilscoop. At least that would be blatant and honest staging.
In the current scenario, Sreesanth has just added Kerala to his list of haters. Perhaps the only people who still like him are his mommy, daddy, his brother and perhaps Jiju. Being a mallu myself, the only reason I'd spot fix was if I was offered Kerala 'barotha-beef fry' with a bit of onions, coconut and a little gravy. Sreesanth has thrown away a good career in Test cricket for mere money, proving he doesn't have an uncle in Dubai who could have called him there to make some money.
Ajit Chandila and Ankit Chavan are old, unknown in the international scenario and hardly matter. Why would the bookies ask them to give runs and then pay them for it? Don't they do that for free? Chandila seems like the dumbest of the lot. He forgot to signal the bookie, like he forgets to put anything behind the ball when he bowls.
This whole episode casts a dirty shadow on cricket. If the richest board can't keep its players from wanting to earn money through fixing, which board can? With all the technological advancements, reaching players has become easy for the bookies. They've also made washing one's bum easier. But that's irrelevant.
What these three have done is unforgivable. Punishments pronounced by ex-players seem reasonable if found guilty. The saga will affect the viewership for the IPL playoffs which will make Srini and Shukla unhappy. They will see to it that the three are punished appropriately.
Drugs, fixing and other issues have started plaguing every sport. Whatever happened to playing sport for fun? The romantic view of sport has been killed by the competitive spirit burning within everyone. How do we go back? We watch New Zealand take on England in a desperate attempt to win one match in white clothes. Hail, Test cricket!